Crib construction



Jan. 30, 1968 D. P. ROYCE 3,365,731

CRIB CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 19, 1966 Dr'ql ver' .7? o yce United States Patent 3,365,731 CRIB CONSTRUCTION Draper P. Royce, Springfieid, Mass, assignor to Gem Industries, Inc, Gardner, Mass, a corporation Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 435,194, Feb. 25, 1965. This application Dec. 19, 1966, Ser. No. 602,984

1 Claim. (Cl. -100) This application is a eontinuation-in-part of my prior application Ser. No. 435,194 filed Feb. 25, 1965, now abandoned, and relates to a new and improved crib construction, particularly for those having drop sides, and the principal object of the invention resides in the provision of a new and improved stabilizing rail or bar extending between and connecting the corner posts of the crib, rigidifying the construction when in place, and being easily applied and removed when it is desired to knock down the crib for transportation or storage.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of a stabilizing bar as aforesaid which includes an end piece, the end piece itself being of novel construction and including a new and improved latch for the conventional trip rod in the raised condition of the more or less usual drop side member.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view with some parts broken away for clarity of illustration;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view on an enlarged scale illustrating the stabilizer bar with the end latch construction thereon, and

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but showing a form of latch which is used to latch the crib side in its downwardmost position.

As shown in the drawings, the invention relates to a crib which has end members and 12, each end member being provided with a pair of corner posts which are indicated at 14, 16, 18 and 20. Ordinarily, the corner posts are more or less permanently attached to the ends 10 and 12. This particular case involves a construction that can use a conventional crib spring or the like 22 held in fixed or adjusted position as desired by any means Well known in the art, see brackets 23.

At one side the crib may have a fixed side but in many cases it is desired to have drop sides at both sides thereof. One of these drop sides is shown at the rear and generally indicated by the reference numeral 24 and is desired the construction for latching it in its raised and lowered conditions may be the same as that illustrated for the front drop side generally indicated by the reference character 26. In this connection it is pointed out that the lower side rail 28 is provided with a trip rod 30 which is hand or knee actuated to move the offset ends 31 of portions 32, 34 of rod 30 out of latching condition. Ordinarily springs such as shown at 36 can be utilized to hold the trip rod in the condition shown in FIG. 1 where it is in latched condition. This trip rod is of conventional construction and it is believed it need not be further described.

The drop side 26 is slidable up and down on the crib rods 38, these being at the opposite ends of the drop side. There is an angle bracket 40 attached to the corner post 18, this being shown in FIG. 3. It has one arm 42 by which it is attached to the corner post and the other arm thereof is apertured to receive the crib rod 38. Also it is provided with a triangular cam type of lock which is shown at 44. This lock has a relatively broad surface at the bottom 3,365,731 Patented Jan. 39, 1968 portion thereof as at 46 and when the drop side descends, the offset end 31 of rod will strike the inclined surface 47. Due to the action of springs 36, it tends to spring past the same under the face 46 and become latched in this position. To unlatch, it is merely necessary to turn the trip rod 36 so that end 32 moves from under the fiat surface 46 to a position where it avoids the latch as indicated in FIG. 3, whereupon the drop side can be raised.

This invention comprises a stabilizer bar generally indicated at 50 and which is firmly secured between corner posts 18 and 14. There is another one of these stabilizer bars secured between corner posts 16 and 20. At each end thereof the stabilizer bar 50 has a plate 52 secured thereto as for instance by rivets or the like and an angular portion as at 54. Portion 54 forms a plate which is securely attached to the corner post 18 above the plate 40 by any desired means such as bayonet slots, screws, or the like.

This plate is punched out in the area at 56 to provide a latch 58 which is similar to that at 44, but inverted With respect thereto, so that the flat latching area 60 is uppermost and the inclined edge 62 faces downwardly to the rear instead of upwardly to the rear.

It will be seen that when the drop side has been released from latch 44 or moved upwardly, the trip rod offset end 31 will rise and strike the inclined surface 62 which carries it to the rear against the action of spring 36 until it snaps over the corner between edge 62 and edge 60, whereupon it assumes the position on edge 60 shown as at 62 in latched position. The drop side is now in raised condition and latched. In FIG. 1 the drop side 26 is shown in its down position.

By this construction the crib is well stabilized and will not twist nor will the parts tend to separate. At the same time a new and improved latch for the ends of the trip rod is provided in a very simple and economical form.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claim, but what I claim is:

1. A crib comprising a pair of ends, corner posts on the ends, slide rods on the corner posts, a drop side mounted to vertically slide on the slide rods, a trip rod on the drop side, a spring tending to move the trip rod in a predetermined direction to unlatch the trip rod in order to allow the drop side to drop, a stabilizer bar, said stabilizer bar extending between a pair of corner posts upon which the drop side is mounted, an end plate at each end of said stabilizer bar, said end plates being mounted one on each of said corner posts, said end plates extending generally normal to the stabilizer bar, the stabilizer bar rigidly connecting the corner posts, an integral latch plate on each end plate, each latch plate being in spaced parallel relation with respect to its end plate and including a latching edge upon which the ends of the trip rod can be positioned to latch the drop side in raised condition thereof,

wherein each latch plate includes a member which is struck up from its end plate, and having an inclined edge facing inwardly and downwardly with respect to the crib to act as a cam to move the corresponding ends of the trip rod out of its normal path against the action of the spring, and a latch surface generally at at right angle thereto and above the same over which the trip rod ends tend to snap due to the trip rod spring when the trip rod ends pass off the end of the inclined edge, as the drop side rises.

No references cited.

CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Primary Examiner. 

1. A CRIB COMPRISING A PAIR OF ENDS, CORNER POSTS ON THE ENDS, SLIDE RODS ON THE CORNER POSTS, A DROP SIDE MOUNTED TO VERTICALLY SLIDE ON THE SLIDE RODS, A TRIP ROD ON THE DROP SIDE, A SPRING TENDING TO MOVE THE TRIP ROD IN A PREDETERMINED DIRECTION TO UNLATCH THE TRIP ROD IN ORDER TO ALLOW THE DROP SIDE TO DROP, A STABILIZER BAR, SAID STABILIZER BAR EXTENDING BETWEEN A PAIR OF CORNER POSTS UPON WHICH THE DROP SIDE IS MOUNTED, AN END PLATE AT EACH END OF SAID STABILIZER BAR, SAID END PLATES BEING MOUNTED ONE ON EACH OF SAID CORNER POSTS, SAID END PLATES EXTENDING GENERALLY NORMAL TO THE STABILIZER BAR, THE STABILIZER BAR RIGIDLY BY CONNECTING THE CORNER POSTS, AN INTEGRAL LATCH PLATE ON EACH END PLATE, EACH LATCH PLATE BEING IN SPACED PARALLEL RELATION WITH RESPECT TO ITS END PLATE AND INCLUDING A LATCHING EDGE UPON WHICH THE ENDS OF THE TRIP ROD CAN BE POSITIONED TO LATCH THE DROP SIDE IN RAISED CONDITION THEREOF, WHEREIN EACH LATCH PLATE INCLUDES A MEMBER WHICH IS STRUCK UP FROM ITS END PLATE, AND HAVING AN INCLINED EDGE FACING INWARDLY AND DOWNWARDLY WITH RESPECT TO THE CRIB TO ACT AS A CAM TO MOVE THE CORRESPONDING ENDS OF THE TRIP ROD OUT OF ITS NORMAL PATH AGAINST THE ACTION OF THE SPRING, AND A LATCH SURFACE GENERALLY AT AT RIGHT ANGLE THERETO AND ABOVE THE SAME OVER WHICH THE TRIP ROD ENDS TEND TO SNAP DUE TO THE TRIP ROD SPRING WHEN THE TRIP ROD ENDS PASS OFF END OF THE INCLINED EDGE, AS THE DROP SIDE RISES. 